Automatic burglar-proof car-door lock.



H. L. APP, J. H..BAKER @L E. G. BOLTON.

AUTOMATIC! BURGLAR PROOF GAR DOOR vLOCK.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 12, 190B.

Patented June 15, 1909.

l, .an

jnvamtozo/ HLA/vp, .la/er and vwiwi GMM/nua n-:s Natexis Persie: co., wAsHlNcToN. D. c.

IIIIIIll/ll UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY L. APP AND JOI-IN H. BAKER, OF RICHMOND, AND EDWARD G. BOLTON, OF FRESNO, CALIFORNIA.

AUTOMATIC BURGLAR-PROOF CAR-DOOR LOCK.

Application led August 12, 1908.

To all whom it may concern:

15e it known that we, Hai-nir L. APP and J 01m II. BAKER, citizens of the United States, residing at Richmond, in the county of Contra Costa, State of California, and EDWARD Gr. ISoL'roN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fresno, in the county of Fresno, State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Burglar-Proof Car-Door Locks; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this application.

This invention relates to improvements in railway car equipment and particularly to that class of cars known as box cars, baggage cars, express cars, and refrigerating cars, the object of the invention being to produce a lock for the doors of the cars, whereby the same will be burglar proof in that if any attempt is made to open the door for burglarizing purposes, while the car is in motion, it will immediately throw the entire trainline into an emergency application of the brakes, thereby stopping the train which both gives notice of the attempt-ed burglary and at the same time permits a pursuit of the guilty party or parties.

A further object of the invention is to produce a simple, ee'ctive and inexpensive device for the purpose.

These objects are accomplished by means of an air pipe tapped into the main train line pipe of the brake system and lead to points near the doors of the car between the walls thereof and provided there with two Way cocks having levers on their stems said levers being adapted to maintain slotted hasp locks in locked position until such levers are turned down and through the said slots which action will open said cocks to the atmosphere thereby throwing the train line into emergency, as described; also by such other and further construction and relative arrangement of parts as will appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 15, 1909.

Serial No. 448,166.

Figure l is a side elevation of a car door showing our improved lock installed therein. Fig. 2 is a sectional View of a car showing the lock and its connections. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view of a car showing the lock. Fig. fl is a sectional view showing the side of the lock. Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the top of the loch.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on the drawings l designates the car and 2 the doors thereon. On said doors are disposed hasp locks 3 having horizontal slots Il.

5 designates the main train line pipe of the brake system of the car tapped onto which are pipes 6 leading between the walls of the car to points near the doors 2 where they are provided with two way cocks 8 having atmosphere ports 8a. The stem 9 of the cocks 8 extend through the outside walls of the car and are provided with levers l0 which levers operate said stem when moved thus operating the cock 8, the vertical position of such levers indicating the closed position of said cocks and the horizontal position indicating that the atmosphere ports Sa are o aen.

lTo set the lock the lever l0 is placed in its horizontal position and the hasp 3 passed thereover by means of the slot 1l. The lever l0 is then returned to vertical position such lever l0 and a lower projected portion ll bearing on the outside of said member 3 thus holding it in locked position. The top of said lever l0 may be slotted as at l2 to permit it being sealed to an eye bolt 13.

In car burglaries the usual scheme is to wait until the train starts to leave a station and the burglar or burglars open the locks and jump into the car and throw the goods out to confederates as the car is moving. lVith our improved lock before the lock can be opened the lever 10 must be moved to horizontal position which opens the train line pipe to the atmosphere through the port 8L thus throwing the train into emergency and giving both notice of the attempt at burglary and an opportunity to apprehend the guilty parties.

In order that there may be no liability of an empty car with its door open getting into a train line and thereby throwing the same into emergency through the port 8, we have provided a spiral spring 14 encircling the stem 9 which spring automatically returns the lever 10 to 'vertical position thus insuring that the train line pipe will be closed when a` train line is made up.

The several parts of this device especially the member 3 may be modified in shape or construction to conform to the several shapes and designs of car and car doors, the principle involved being of course the same throughout.

In conjunction with our improved lock there .may be used any of the, other locks now used 0n cars if. desired.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that we have produced a device which substantially fulfils the objects of the invention, as set forth.

hile this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of our invention, still in practice, snch deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described our invention what we claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patentis l. A car, an air brake system thereon, a

door on said car, a lock on said door, and

means operatively connected with said lock and said an' brake s'i/fstem, whereby when said lock is opened said brake system will be thrown in en'icrgency application, set forth.

A car, an air line pipe therein, a` pipe connected with said pipe and provided with a cock, a door on said car, a lock on said door, and means whereby said lock will operate said cock as set forth.

3. A. car, a brake system thereon, a` door on said car, a slotted hasp lock on said door, a lever on said car adapted to be inserted through said slot and bear on the outside of said hasp, and means coi'inecting said lever with the brake system on said car.

il. A car, a brake system thereon, a door on said car, a. cock on said car connected with said brake system, a lever on the stem of said cock, a spring operating to maintain av predetermined position for said level', and a locking member on said door engageable with said lever.

In witness whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

HARRY L. APP. JOHN H. BAKER. EDlVi-XBD (ir. BOLTON. litnesses Planer S. lvnns'rnn, FRANK H. CAu'rnu. 

